Examination of the Pre-service Teachers’ Experiences and Perceptions on Teaching Practices: English Language Teaching Case

Abstract

This study aims to evaluate the pre-service teachers’ experiences and perceptions on teaching practices provided within an internship program carried out at a major state university in Turkey in a holistic way from various aspects. The participants of the study were 65 pre-service teachers studying in the English Language Teaching department at a state university in Turkey. For this purpose, in the study, an explanatory mixed-methods research design was used. A Likert scale questionnaire was conducted with the pre-service teachers to collect quantitative data. Then a semi-structured interview was conducted with eight pre-service teachers to support the quantitative data with qualitative data. The results show that the teaching practice offered within the scope of the internship program is effective as it responds to the needs of pre-service teachers in terms of professional development and mentoring support regarding their teaching professional skills. However, the findings also show that according to the pre-service teachers, there are some issues such as the length of the teaching practice, the inadequacy of mentorship support, organizational problems, and the limited freedom given during teaching practice need to be considered. Finally, the study concludes by presenting some recommendations in line with the results to improve the quality of the teaching practice provided to pre-service teachers in Turkey.